This mesmerizing memoir by poet and translator E. J. Koh explores immigration, motherhood, familial bonds, love, trauma, forgiveness and reconciliation. It takes the reader from San Francisco to Korea to Japan. I found it to be a gorgeous, lyrical, painful, poignant and hopeful read. –Janis Segress, Queen Anne Book Company, Seattle, WA Explore language and …
To this reader, two of the scariest book and life scenarios are that of cybersecurity and cyberterrorism. Richard Sandford in his novel The Soul Snatchers has achieved both scenarios. The time is the near future. The locales include the San Juan Islands in Washington State, Seattle, Portland (Oregon) and the Bay Area of California. The …
From Shelf Awareness for Readers November 15, 2019: Welcome to the small town of Odsburg, Wash., where mountain lions live in basements, a “strange skinless guy” hangs out in the town square, and a couple is so hungry they eat themselves, literally, out of house and home. Odsburg by Matt Tompkins (Souvenirs: And Other Stories), is narrated …
SLAY is so much more than just another book about video games: it’s about a girl who carves a space in the world for herself and completely owns it, and it’s about the microaggressions and the can-I-touch-your-hairs and all the things that come with being one of a handful of black kids in a school. …
I should perhaps be focusing on Coats’s newest book, the middle-grade fantasy The Green Children of Woolpit, but it’s just come out and well, I haven’t read it yet. But I really want to, based on how much my daughter and I enjoyed Coats’s earlier novel, The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming. I can’t …
Karl Marlantes once again brings us an epic that can’t be put down, this time set in the forests and on the rivers of southwest Washington, all soon to be engulfed by logging and fishing. Deep River combines the story of immigrant siblings (from Finland) and a larger Scandinavian community, the desires of families escaping …
You might like Glen Erik Hamilton’s Van Shaw series. Van was raised as a thief, but got out of that life once upon a time and went into the military. Now he’s out, and he’s got old family history to settle. The first book, Past Crimes, starts fast and runs faster. Plus it’s set in …
I have been a book professional since 1974. In the course of my career, I have met many authors. Some have become friends. Bharti Kirchner is one. I try not to let friendship get in the way of honest reviews. Ms Kirchner has written several books in the fields of cooking and fiction. Season of Sacrifice is the first …
The Library of Congress National Book Festival is an annual literary event that brings together best-selling authors and thousands of book fans for author talks, panel discussions, book signings and other activities. Over its long history, the National Book Festival has become one of the pre-eminent literary events in the United States. Attendees can interact …
I think it’s fairly safe to say that we all have several reading personalities, depending on mood and circumstance. Sometimes, you might be in the mood for the literary equivalent of a summer blockbuster, with explosions and car chases and clearly defined bad guys. Other times you might want a stately costume drama or something …
